Illegal in that period. Something like shipping insurance can be built from a repurchase agreement and this may get around usury/gambling laws, but how do you do that for life insurance? That takes more legal than probability knowledge. Also do you have the skills to combat insurance fraud?

Annuities are the same math but different product, and got valued first by Haley. I'm not aware of life insurance being illegal per se, and there might be ways to work around it via structuring as a fraternal organization ala the origins of the insurance industry in the US.